Blue, Red and Purple
by LazerTH
Summary: When will the fighting end? When will the final act draw to a close? The dispute between Robotnik and his greatest enemies ends here.
1. Default Chapter

Blue, Red and Purple

By LazerTH

Disclaimer: Only Lazer T.H. and Rebecca Coriander belong to me. Other characters are either of my imagination or owned by Sega.

Author's Note:

                        This is part 2 of the sequel to Brothers of the Rainbow. The previous story was "Mrs. Sally Hedgehog" in which Sonic and Sally were wed, and my SIFF characters Lazer and Rebecca were pledged to marry. This fiction is different to its predecessor, so kick back, relax, and prepare for some serious action. 

***

            The return trip to Great Forest was becoming turbulent. The sky had a very black look and the sea was lost in fog.

            "Tails, I hope you're not heading into a storm," yelled Sonic over the roaring wind. He and his wife Sally were standing atop the Tornado's wing, due to lack of seating (the pilot and their luggage had filled the only two seats available).

            "No way. The barometer says nothing about it. It's just a rain cloud."

            It was not. 

            "Tails!" Sally shouted. She was clinging to Sonic. There was sleet now; icicles began to form on their furs. 

            "Don't worry, Aunty! It's gonna be alright!"

            The biplane charged onward through the icy skies. By now, even Tails would have admitted they were flying in a full-blown storm. The wind tore through his hair as ice began to creep over his pilot's goggles.

            "I'll try to fly above it," Tails said, and pulled down the wheel. The Tornado climbed upward at a sharp forty-five degree angle. 

            "Hey!" Sonic and Sally complained. They were hanging onto the ice-caked wing by their paws.

            "Sorry," Tails grunted, pulling back the wheel with all the muscle he could muster. Soon they would be flying above the clouds where there was only sunlight and calm breezes.

            "You OK?" Sonic asked, hanging onto dear life by his fingers.

            Sally turned her head, blinking water out of her eyes.

            "For now! Are you freezing? I can't feel my paws."

            "We'll both be ice cubes, unless we get outta this," Sonic said in a louder voice. Tails took the hint and tried a bit harder. He forced the Tornado into an almost vertical climb.

            "Hang on!"

            "Do we have a choice?" they hollered. One of Sally's paws gave up that moment, swinging free. Sally shrieked.

            "Sal!" her husband yelled. She weakened, and soon both paws were grasping air. Sonic could see Sally falling, falling to the dark waves, and falling to inexorable death. 

            _"No!"_

His paw shot out and clamped onto her wrist. Her eyes met his in the strain of that moment, as she waved back and forth in the violent gale and his other paw threatened to lose its grip on the wing.

            "I'll never let go," he promised. With a prodigious effort he swung his wife upward, and she had enough sense to hook her arm over the ice-coated wing.

            "Sal! We'll always be together!" Sonic shouted above the storm. She was surprised to find a grin on his face. He let go of her wrist and held her hand. They bent their heads, while sleet and wind slashed through their fur. The Tornado broke through the clouds, and leveled its flight path. The couple groggily stood up, soaked to the bone, their teeth chattering. The sun beamed brightly upon them as the warm air kissed their faces. Ice melted from the Tornado and its passengers.

            "Tails, you do anything that stupid again and I'll take away your pilot's license."

            "That's okay, Sonic," Tails grinned, "I don't have one."

            The Tornado glided through the clouds to friendlier skies.

***

Lazer sensed the sniper before the trigger was even pulled. Raising his fist, a bolt of Chaos Emerald energy flared into existence and exploded three stories above the parade. The crowd screamed and scrambled for cover, wondering what the hell was going on. Not wasting time the red hedgehog took to the air and landed inside the small apartment. The sniper, clad in black, was covered in dust. His AK-47 rifle was damaged but he pulled a submachine gun from his belt and fired. The bullets never hit Lazer.

            "You fool," the red hedgehog thundered, and reached behind his back. The blue-white katana glittered in the flame of Chaos energy surrounding his body. The black-clad sniper ran for the door but a slash to the head ended his escape. 

            _I'm not paid enough for this…_

He slumped to the floor, still alive. Lazer returned the katana to its sheath.

            "The mayor is hated," he muttered, and exited through the window.

***

            The news of the attempted assassination reached Knothole first, since Lazer had been dismissed from his duties that day and told Sonic. The blue hedgehog was wrapped in a blanket and had a hot water bottle on his head. It was winter in Knothole.

            "Why'd anyone want to kill the mayor?"

            "There are elite groups that disagree with the mayor's idea for expansion. They do not think that Robotropolis should ever be reclaimed."

            "Why? I was the one who suggested that the Freedom Fighter City should grow over Robotropolis."

            "Then you are partly to blame. Many people died in Robotropolis. These elite groups don't want their children to grow up on such a bloody land."

            "It's just sentimental? Great Destiny, I'll never understand how some people's minds work."

            "That sniper was thinking of murder. I'm sure I could've picked up his thoughts from a mile away."

            "Being the mayor's bodyguard was a perfect fit, eh, samurai boy?"

            Lazer glowered at him.

            "Go back to your wife. She's missing you even now."

            "Hey!" Sonic yelled. Lazer walked away. "You bastard! Stay out of her head!"

            Sonic went back to Sally right away. As a gesture of goodwill, Rotor, Tails and many other Knothole folk had pitched in to build the newlyweds their very own house. It was near to the palace gates, so that Sally could visit her family (and Sonic's in-laws could keep an eye on him). Sonic approached their double-decker home and swung the door open.

            "Hi, honey," sang Sally when he entered. She, too, was dressed in a blanket and hot water bottle. She put down the book she was reading and got up from the desk, to hug him, to hold him. "What news?"

            "Someone tried to kill the mayor. Good thing Lazer's his bodyguard, I couldn't think of anyone more suited for the job."

            "That's fine, but I'm glad you're _my_ bodyguard," she cooed.

            "I bet. What're you reading?"

            "The Joys of Marriage. The book said nothing about living with a supersonic husband, though."

            "That's because I am the One and Only Blue Wonder."

            "And what am I?"

            "Perfect," he said sincerely.

***

            Kazuo sipped the scalding tea. He sat upon his knees on the forest floor with the kettle beside him. A raspberry-purple rabbit with a violet ponytail, his gray kimono and sheathed katana betrayed his samurai spirit. For years he had been a Freedom Fighter, training Rebecca Coriander to improve her karate. The tip of his left ear was missing, lost in a fight years past. His narrow amber eyes considered the curling steam rising before his face. In it he saw his only student with that boy, Lazer. He had been surprised that such a hedgehog wielded a katana and practiced a style called "Wanrikken". Maybe he would teach that boy a thing or two when it came to true mastery of kendo. Placing the cup on the grass Kazuo picked up his sword. How would he teach Lazer? The sword flashed outward, blue-white against the green forest, and returned to its sheath in the blink of an eye. Kazuo sat on his knees and refilled the cup.

            A tree groaned and slid off its severed stump.

            "I will teach him," Kazuo promised, while fresh steam billowed over his face.

***

"How was work?"

            "Just an attempt on my boss's life. I can't believe this happened during my first week!"

            "I thought samurais work for no one?"

            "I pray that my late sensei forgives me."

            Lazer and his fiancée Rebecca constructed paper collages by the Lake of Rings. His primary job was to protect the Lake, but, faced with the prospect of marriage, Lazer was forced to find paying work.

            "You're using too much glue. It makes the paper mushy."

            "You are wise, master," he replied, mimicking what one of her dojo students had said earlier today. Although _he_ wore 'V'-shaped fur on his head, _her_ forehead fur was curved into a gentle semi-circle. Genetics was to blame.

            "What are you making, anyway?"

            "You."

            She peered at his work.

            "My eyes do not take up three quarters of my face."

            "They don't? Strange. They're all I seem to notice."

            Whether an insult or compliment, Rebecca did not know; Lazer's face could be as expressionless as slate when he wanted it to be.

            "Um, Lazer?"

            "Yes."

            "When…"

            "Do you think our wedding should be? Hmm."

            Silence.

            "There is this beautiful place of worship in the city. The House of Destiny, they called it. The mayor goes there."

            "I was thinking more along the lines of a quiet wedding."

            The church in Cridon base, they both thought. It was in that place of worship that Rebecca had prayed half a decade for Lazer' safety. It was where Lazer had learned the hymn, which engaged them.

            "Your church, then."

            "Yeah, I thought so."

            An awkward silence ensued.

            "Oh," Rebecca said, and jumped to her feet, "I can't do this anymore!"

            "What?"

            "The collage. I can't concentrate."

            "Aw, siddown, Becky," he taunted.

            "I hate that name! That's what my Dad calls me!"

            "Come on, Becky. Finish the…"

            He paused to block the ax-kick to his head. He sprung to his feet and laughed at her.

            "You need to be disciplined, Becky."

            _"Don't call me that!"_

            They began a comprehensive demonstration of the martial arts.

***

            Thousands of tubes and wires formed a network around Robotnik's body, inserted into his flesh. Where his nervous system began and the wiring ended was impossible to tell. The supercomputer, his life support, monitored every heartbeat, every laboured breath. He was in a state of stupor, his senses dulled by the large amounts of painkillers in his bloodstream. 

            Never before or since had the scientist been this close to death. 

            "Are we feeling better today, Sir?"

            His nephew Snively had entered, holding a large test tube containing orange fluid.

            "Breakfast?" Robotnik thought. His thoughts ran into the supercomputer, which manifested them via loudspeakers in the room. They blared whenever he was in need.            "Yes, wait a moment."

            The short hook-nosed man placed the test tube within an alcove built into the computer. A tube descended into the orange substance and sucked, transporting it directly into Robotnik's arteries.

            "The arena has been completed, Sir. Shall the second phase be carried out?"

            "Yes. Vengeance will be mine."

            "Of course," Snively murmured while leaving the room. Every time he looked at the wretched form of his uncle, memories haunted him.

Three weeks ago his uncle had teleported into the underground base, vomiting blood at an alarming rate. Snively was not prepared for the dreadfulness of that day. The readout of the medical computer had been ghastly: In each arm, seven bone fractures. All twelve ribs were broken. The spinal column had snapped in six places, with the spinal chord being ruptured in three. Both lungs were punctured and hemorrhaging. The worst injury was to his stomach (possibly the largest organ he had, Snively thought). It had exploded _within_ his body. The stomach acid had damaged several major organs (liver, kidneys, pancreas- all were partially dissolved) and poisoned his blood stream with its undigested contents.

Snively had taken immediate and decisive action. The supercomputer and at least ten thousand servo units went to work, probing the almost dead scientist, assessing the extreme injuries. They had stabilized him, removed toxins, re-constructed organs and bones, along with hundreds upon hundreds of other surgical procedures. The computer gave Robotnik a 0.3% possibility of survival at first, but Robotnik refused to die. Undaunted ambition, a fierce thirst for revenge or an overpowering need to live, Snively did not know how, but Robotnik had beaten the odds. His chance for survival was now 42%.

"Carry out phase two," he reminded himself. 


	2. Ch 2

            The next day found the assassin sniper in an interrogation room, sitting handcuffed beneath the glare of a spotlight. The newspapers told all: a war veteran, one of the many who had turned to crime after Robotnik's war had ended, for it was difficult to stop killing after being trained to do just that. He once belonged to a small Freedom Fighter faction that had disbanded three years earlier, after its leaders were roboticized. Overall, he disagreed with the mayor's idea to reclaim Robotropolis. Sympathizers to his cause were protesting outside the police station. He could hear their angry voices.

            "They want me to be released. They all want the mayor dead," he said with satisfaction. 

            The police chief looked at him with disgust. The sniper was a black canine, pointy eared and snub-nosed. He sat there, grinning, dressed in a prisoner's black and white. His yellow eyes were filled with self-assurance.

            "Tell me who you work for, and the sentence will be more lenient."

            "No," said Reyes, for that was his name, "I do not betray my employer."

            The police chief slammed his paws on the desk and asked in a louder voice, including a threat. Reyes was silent, grinning. 

            "It's no bloody use," the chief said over his shoulder. Reyes, sitting in the midst of blinding white light, could not see who else was in the room.

            "I will try."

            A red hedgehog took a seat opposite to Reyes. 

            "You caught me."

            "I did," said Lazer.

            "It did you no good. They all want my freedom."

            Reyes smiled. Lazer mimicked him. For several very long, drawn out minutes the sniper and bodyguard grinned at each other. The police chief wondered what sort of interrogation this was. 

            Reyes was scowling inwardly. _What the hell's wrong with him, _he thought,_ why;s he smiling like that?_  

            Lazer's thoughts were of Rebecca. His smile held no deceit, no sarcasm; it held love. It was incredibly unnerving to Reyes.

            _"What do you want?"_ Reyes yelled at the top of his voice, causing the police chief to fall off the chair in the corner.

            "Oh, good. You're in the mood for talking now," said Lazer as the chief muttered an oath and resumed his seat.

            _Did he just trick me?_ Reyes thought, and said, "No, I am not talking."

            Lazer pointed a finger at Reyes's head and calmly set the hair aflame.

            "Hey!" the dog screamed. Lazer watched the hair burn. It reminded him of the final day of Xadra, a country reduced to radioactive dust, ashes and endless flames. There was a cup of cold coffee left on the table; the chief had not finished drinking it. Lazer tossed its contents across the table. The now bald and soggy dog expressed his displeasure in the most lurid language possible.

            "Do you want to talk now?" Lazer interrupted in a soft voice.

            "Go to hell."

            "Hell?" Lazer echoed in trembling voice, remembering that terrible day in the past. He lifted his hand: a red flame danced before Reyes's eyes, evaporating the coffee off his head and singing his nose.

            "Alright!" Reyes screamed, "Justin, the jeweler on 67th street, he paid me!"

He took a breath that smelt of roasted coffee.

"I have connections. I have a lawyer! I'll sue for police brutality!"

            "I am not an officer. I do not have any money. Furthermore," Lazer continued in that calm, soft voice, "No lawyer will defend you. The mayor will see to that."

            The red hedgehog pushed back his chair and turned away from the hating face of Reyes.

            "I'm done. I know the way out, thank you."

            The door opened, closed, and he was gone.

            "I demand that you provide medical attention," Reyes said afterward. His scalp and face were blistering with raw pain.

            "Sure. There's plenty of cold coffee in this station," the chief quipped while he grabbed the convict's arms and led him away.

***

            Demolitionists had razed half of Robotropolis since its abandonment. Each took deep satisfaction in his or her job, never complaining about the cold, dank conditions or the lousy pay. 

            Fifty workers were assigned to an underground bunker. Inside were several hundred inactive units, ranging from SwatBots to hulking army tanks. Standard procedure dictated that these units were to be dismantled for spare parts. As the first engineer began her work, the bunker's entrance began to shudder close. Only eight escaped before the massive doors swung closed. The forty-two remaining watched with horror as the bunker came to life.

***

            The blue wonder was seated beside Sally, reading a magazine. It was Sally's idea to establish a habit of reading together every Sunday evening.

"Sonic!"

            Tails almost collided with his buddy. Startled from their quiet time, Sonic and Sally looked up. Tails was making frantic gestures with his arms.

            "They're trapped, in the bunker! Need help now! Robots in there!"

            "Stop. Rewind. Say it slowly," said Sonic.

            Tails shook his head, eyes wide and fearful. 

            "No time. Sector 15J, bunker T-13, they're dying in there!"

            His tails whirring behind him, Tails sped off to Robotropolis. Sonic leaned over, pecked Sally on the cheek (his eyes communicated his regret; she understood) and then chased his pal to the dark citadel.

***

            The bunker doors dented on the first spin attack, crumpled on the second and crashed inward on the third. Blue and orange lightning made themselves known to the robots. 

            "I am your target!" Sonic yelled. A swatbot, throwing a bloody engineer aside like a discarded toy, aimed its blaster toward Sonic. While the speedy blue hedgehog distracted the robots, Tails darted to all corners of the room to remove surviving engineers.

            "Is that all you got?" Sonic shouted. A hail of laser beams followed him as he ran along the walls.

            "You okay?" Tails was asking a brown feline. Blood dribbled from the corner of her mouth.

            "Ben… take care of Ben," she whimpered. Tails looked in the direction of her outstretched paw, and cringed. Ben's head was scattered about the floor, gray flecks of brain matter mixed with splashes of red.

            "Take care of him," she repeated. Tails slung her arm over his shoulders, tears stinging his eyes.

            "I'll take your best shot!" he heard Sonic yell, followed by a loud _boom._

"Destroy them all," Tails urged quietly. 

Six minutes passed like that. A heavy cloud of smoke blanketed the place. Spare parts were strewn everywhere. Twelve cadavers were lined up outside the bunker to be carried away and buried.

            "I got out as many as I could," Tails said with a shrug. The survivors were being carted away. More than a few of them would be classified as 'Dead On Arrival'.

Sonic's eyes were shut. His teeth were clenched, his fists also.

            "I wasn't fast enough. I saw all of them, every person who died because _I wasn't fast enough."_

            The words of the dark sorceress Hannah Nyress rang in his mind like a taunt from hell: _How many parents needlessly lost their children because you could not run fast enough to save them? How many allies became roboticized due to your stupid mistakes? Pathetic!_

            "Not fast… enough," he groaned. He felt Tails's paw on his shoulder but shrugged it off. Suddenly, the orange fox plunged into the bunker, his twin tails disappearing into the smoke. Sonic waited, disinterested in what Tails had seen. Voices and memories echoed in his head.

            "Sonic! A computer down here still works."

            "Whoop-te-fricken'-doo," he replied.

            "Get in here. Look at this."

            With a ragged sigh Sonic stepped inside. Acrid smoke stung his eyes and lungs. He should have held his breath.

            "Look, there's Robotropolis, the Freedom Fighter city, and another place."

            Sonic saw the dully-glowing monitor, wreathed with smoke.

"What other place?" he asked, and coughed.

            "I don't know, but I got its coordinates. I'll try to find out about it."

            "Damn this place needs an air filter," Sonic said between coughing fits. Why wasn't Tails affected? Oh yeah: he was a mechanic; he _breathed_ smoke from his crazy machines.

            "All it has is this error message, nothing…"

            That was when Robotnik talked to them.

            _"My nemesis. I am waiting. If you refuse, you will not enjoy that wife of yours for much longer. Come to me."_

            "Him again!" Tails exclaimed, "He's up to his old trick of 'step-into-my-lair-so-I-can-kill-you'? Sonic?"

            Nobody else was there.

            "Sonic? Where'd he go?"

***

            _Sally._

Her name was bouncing back and forth in his mind faster than his legs were moving. Sonic did not take threats to Sally's life lightly. Sure, Robotnik could promise hellfire and brimstone to _him_, but not to Sally, oh, no.

            "Be there," Sonic prayed, "Be safe. Be home. Be there."

            He was an almost invisible blue blur trailing a dust cloud, pressing the laws of nature in his mad dash. He had broken the sound barrier 1.3 seconds after Robotnik had threatened his wife.

            "Be there, please, Sal!"

            The Great Forest rushed up to meet him. He spared a glance upward, past the trees and to the morning sky.

            Smoke, twisting like a snake, came from the forest. For a moment Sonic could not breathe.

            _Knothole is on fire!  
            _The horrific thought spurred him to greater speed. He could see the flames now, dancing between the trees in a macabre victory dance.

            _"Sally!"_ he screamed, and crashed into Rotor, who in turn fell onto Antoine, who flailed his arms and struck Bunnie. She lost balance and hit the barbecue pit, which fell to one side and sprayed hot coals over the grass.

            "Hey!" Rotor said.

            "What eez this!" Antoine said.

            "Mah stars!" said Bunnie.

            "Huh?" said Sonic. 

            The three of them got up and glared at him.

            "We _were_ trying to start a barbecue! I didn't even put the steak on yet."

            "_Infidel! Vigilante!_ I should arrest you!"

            "Heavens! Thuh grass is on fire!"

            "Huh?" Sonic said again. He stood there stupidly, while the rest of them tried to beat down the fire with Rotor's apron (Kiss the Cook). Before they had a chance to yell at him again, Sonic slinked away toward his house. 

He opened the door and there she was, reading the same book by the same desk with the same lamp. It was nice to have things that did not change.

"Sonic! You look like yesterday's road kill."

He did, his fur was black with soot and crude oil from the robots.

"Sally. You're safe."

His voice did not sound too good, either.

"Don't speak. Go take a _really_ long bath. You stink."

***

            "Your ax kick is flawed."

            "It is not."

            Lazer grinned at the twin infernos that were Rebecca's eyes. She was standing before a section of tree trunk that was balanced on top two concrete bricks. Cridon's greenhouse loomed over them.

            "You can exert more force than that."

            "I am strong! I hold back since extra force is unnecessary."

            Lazer was reminded of the Princess's words (_What's her name again… Oh, yeah, Sally_), admonishing him for the excessive force he used to 'discipline' a rookie Freedom Fighter.

            "Will you hold back when that extra force _is_ necessary?"

            "When will it become necessary?" she huffily replied. Watching her angry eyes made his heart ache.

            "Now. If you don't break this with a single kick, I'm going to taunt you for the rest of the afternoon."

            She turned toward the offending tree trunk. Why did she have to prove herself to him? She would rain some vicious blows on his head if he wanted a real demonstration of power.

            "Becky."

            That most hated of all nicknames seared her brain. Without thought, her leg rose to a nearly vertical angle and lashed downward in a blur of speed. 

            "That's better. Now try the log."

            He released the hold on her leg.

_If that blow had connected, not even the Emeralds would have saved me._

He looked on as she concentrated.

            _Calm yourself, girl. Focus completely on that weak point._

Her advanced training under Kazuo proved effective. The single burst of strength, coupled with perfect precision and style, took Lazer's breath away. The log lay in two pieces on the ground.

            "Good," he blurted when her triumphant gaze rested on him.

            "Hah. You were holding your breath. You know it was perfect."

She ran her fingers through her orange hair.

"If you will excuse me, _Lazer_, my father requested that I teach him some self defense."

            "Can I…"

            "No, you can't come along. Farewell, my husband to be."

            She brushed past him with a toss of her head.

            "Damn," he muttered when she was out of earshot. She had exuded every last drop of conceit in those haughty words. 'Husband to be', what the _hell?_ If she referred to him like that again…

            "Lazer-san."

            Kazuo had appeared around the corner of the greenhouse, donned in gray kimono, silent katana at his side.

            "Hello. Rebecca just ax kicked this tree trunk as if it were a chopstick."

            Kazuo eyed the two-foot thick pieces.

            "Small. Her fist would have been enough break it."

            "I doubt it. She's not that strong a puncher."

            Kazuo's eyes were like bits of amber glass, as he drew the blue-white blade and walked forward.

            "Do you belittle her? Then you belittle me."

            Try as he might, Lazer's sixth sense of feeling another's state of mind did not work on Kazuo. What kind of mental defenses did Kazuo have, that Chaos Emeralds could not penetrate?

"I meant no offense to either of you," he replied, completely unsure if the purple rabbit was irked or merely testing him. Kazuo held out the katana, its point almost touching between Lazer's eyes.

"I have not seen your skill, Lazer-san, but you are unarmed."

"I am."

The blade lowered, Kazuo walked away. The forward thrust came at near-invisible speed, aimed for a fatal blow.

"You have proven some worth," remarked Kazuo. The blade was sandwiched between Lazer's paws, restrained one inch from the centre of his chest. Coal black eyes bored into slits of amber.

"Considering the speed, it was as if you never turned around. Do not try it again."

He pushed the blade away. Without another word the purple rabbit turned around, sliding the burnished steel into its scabbard. His soft footsteps led him into the darkness of the forest.

***

            The coordinates of the area indicated on Robotnik's computer were valid, Tails discovered. Nicole confirmed the point to be between the Great Forest and the ocean. Mapmakers had written off the area as desert, an infertile location that the Great Forest could not seed. 

_            Just like Robotnik to choose a desert for a home.  _

"Got what you wanted, Miles?"

            "Aw, Aunty!"

            Scowling, he shoved Nicole into her paws. Sonic was still showering in the next room; he could hear the splashing water and overtones of noisy scrubbing.

            "Can't you forget my real name? Ever?"

            "No. I don't want to. I need it when you're acting too seriously."

            "But I gotta take this seriously!"

Slumped into the deep cushions of her couch, Sally thought he looked thinner than usual. His ribs were poking against his fur.

            "Do you eat three meals a day?"

            "What?" he asked and screwed up his face. What a ridiculous thing to ask!

            "I know you work sixteen hours a day, but do you eat?"

            "Sally, has it occurred to you that I'm not a kid anymore? 

            That caused a sharp pain in her chest. 

            "But you are," she said, half-believing her own words. It was true that Tails had hit puberty over the past few years. When had that cruel entity, Time, grabbed her little nephew and stolen him from her? When had that other specter, Experience, given him such an adult view of things?

            Tails registered the dismay on Sally's face. His mind clicked and whirred and output the appropriate solution.

            "It's okay, Aunty, I'm sorry."

            He held her close. She sat there, looking at her coffee table, not knowing what to do. Would reality checks like this always happen, would nothing remain the same in her life?

            "Sonic," she murmured. Tails heard her, and remembered that Sonic (who was rigorously drying off with a heavy towel and muttering to himself) would want to know of Robotnik's new hideout. He took another glance at his 'aunty', however, and chose to remain with her a while longer. She looked stranded.


	3. Ch 3

            Through the open louvers of his window, Sonic could see a small portion of the night sky, its tiny pinpricks of light peeking through the trees. High school education had taught him that stars were superheated gaseous orbs, floating millions of miles away in the void of space, expending an unbelievable amount of energy per second. He turned on his side. A single candle beside the bed created a golden outline of Sally's curves on the sheets, rising and falling with every breath. Yes, high school education had taught him all about _that_, too. He turned again to the stars. One of them winked at him, and he knew that this particular star had died eons ago. 

            After Tails's explanation of where to find Robotnik's new base, Sonic wished that Robotnik's evil were dead. He wished that Robotnik had made an empty threat before disappearing forever. Sonic would not be at ease, though, until he investigated and ensured that Robotnik would and _could_ not harm anyone. The self-proclaimed emperor of Mobius would be visited for the last time. 

            "Tomorrow," he said. He did not look forward to it. He dreaded every second that would pull him closer to another confrontation with Robotnik. He was afraid… to be separated from _her._

Sally.

            He had led a charmed life, surviving through thick and thin. He worried all his friends, he laughed at danger. Before, he had no reason to be afraid of death, for he would leave no one behind (Tails could survive on his own, he thought). Now there was _her. _He watched her regal form, peaceful in slumber. She needed him, as he needed her. 

            "I will return."

            Hunkering down into the bed, her face was the last thing he saw before sleep claimed him.

***

            Breathing in the dewy morning air, Kazuo awoke. The earth was softer, warmer beneath him. Drops of moisture hung from his fur. It had rained during the night.

            The dense oak tree with its leafy branches had shielded him. He was sitting between two of its roots, arms and knees drawn to his chest, back pressed into the unyielding bark. He had spent the night thus, with his sword beside him. Using it for support, Kazuo found his feet. He slipped the sword and scabbard into the sash tied around his waist. Its weight was a comforting companion among the silent trees.

            Without thought he headed toward Cridon base. There, a kettle of scalding green tea and a plate of fresh rice cakes waited. The baker was pleasing to him. She had not questioned how he had broken her porcelain tea set, one week ago. She had given him her own iron tea set, and, with a smile, said that her husband would make a new one. Oh, there was another person responsible for the inconvenience. Kazuo had leveled the blade of his sword between the culprit's eyes. In those eyes he had seen no fear, and so he had tested the body. There was no weakness in the paws that had held back his sword. 

Kazuo, entering Cridon base, turned away from the bakery and proceeded to the abode of the Coriander family. Rebecca was pleasing to him, more than any other. His student was performing daily exercises even at the first light of dawn. 

"Sensei!"

She halted her activities (punishing a wooden mannequin) then bowed low. This time, he did not return the formality between student and master.

"Forgive my forwardness. I must locate Lazer-san."

Ah, so many questions in her eyes, both the colour of warm brown earth. She asked him if he knew the location of the Lake of Rings; he did not. Hesitating for but a second, she divulged the directions to the Lake. 

"Thank you."

            She resumed her exercises the moment his back was turned. He regretted avoiding the baker _and_ his student this morning, but there was an obligation that overrode his stomach and duties as sensei.             

***

            Lazer had come to appreciate his sword slightly more since yesterday. Arikam Saotome, long deceased master of the Wanrikken, had never been seen without a katana within five feet of his grasp. Waking, sleeping, and eating: the sword had been his constant companion.

            "Never again," Lazer swore. Remembering the blurred moment in which he stopped another sword with his bare paws, he reached for the hilt behind his back. The Lake rippled calmly in the shadows of trees.

            "Wanrikken style," he announced to the dark waters.

            _!!!CRACK!!!_

The Lake split down the centre. The shockwave charged onward, slicing into the opposite bank, stopping when it turned three and a half trees into firewood.

            "Is that of your natural power, or of the Chaos Emeralds?"

            "You have a talent for approaching unnoticed, Kazuo."

            As coal met amber, Lazer put back his sword. Kazuo had not drawn his.

            "It is the talent of a thief," said Kazuo. Lazer laughed.

            "A samurai is not a thief. A thief can never be a samurai. My sensei told me that when I _borrowed _his sword for practice."

            "You were disappointed with the training sword?"

            "You understand. It was too easy to wield a piece of bamboo, in comparison…"

            He paused to watch Kazuo's blade being drawn.  

            "…To the real thing."

            Lazer did not know what to think. The psychic sight of Chaos Emeralds could not read Kazuo. His face conveyed as much emotion as the sword he held.

            "You have a sword. Good."

            "Is this a continuation of yesterday?" Lazer heard himself say. 

            "Live in the present, or you will have no future."

            The yards separating them closed in a flash of movement. Lazer rested his paw on the hilt. Kazuo slashed downward: he reacted with a crosswise block, using both paws on the hilt to buffer the blow. Even then, the shock of such a powerful attack shuddered through his arms, as if holding back a hurricane. Mustering his strength Lazer pushed against the sword, forcing Kazuo back. 

            "Good," said the rabbit, his face impassive. What followed was a flurry of sword strokes: Lazer counted eighteen in four seconds while deflecting them all. When Kazuo hopped backward, Lazer brought _his_ sword down in an arc of blue and white fury, slamming into the ground. Kazuo merely hopped to the right, allowing the forest to absorb the shockwave. 

            "That ground energy is too narrow for single combat," Kazuo said, expressionless, and leaped forward. His airborne body twisted as he reached for his sword. Lazer leaned backward to avoid the slash, but Kazuo continued to spiral in mid-air after his initial attack. The second slash cut into Lazer, releasing a trail of crimson that spattered Kazuo's face. Lazer thudded on the grass while Kazuo went down lightly on one knee.

            For fourteen years, Lazer had never felt the pain of fire. Five Chaos Emeralds would not suffer any flame to harm his body. Now, a rod of white-hot iron lay across his chest, sizzling the flesh and boiling the blood. For a delirious moment, he wondered if the Emeralds had forsaken him. Then he realized he was not breathing; his oxygen-starved brain was irrational. He forced in a lungful of air, which caused the rod of fire to press deeply into his body. The breath became a scream. After one more breath he felt the flame dying, and was able to sit up.

            Kazuo was frozen in his landing position, his head bowed with long ears touching the grass. The sword and arm that held it were stiff, held out at a slight angle to his shoulder, a few drops of red glistening on the blade. He was not moving, even to breathe.

            "Kazuo?"

            No answer. The combined power of Lazer's resident Emeralds was acting upon his wound, sealing the gash with new flesh. He got to his feet, without pain, moments later, and called his opponent's name. The bloodstained sword fell from Kazuo's fingers.

            "Lazer-san."

            Kazuo threw himself prostrate onto the grass before Lazer's feet. The words of Arikam came back to him: _It is a gesture that begs forgiveness for a shameful act_.__

In that moment, Kazuo opened his mind. The dense mental fog gave way to startling clarity. Before Kazuo could utter an explanation, Lazer _felt_ the reason for Kazuo's actions of late. A simple reason that was complicated beyond measure.

            "Kazuo… I forgive you. It is impossible _not_ to love her."

            Amazement. Confusion. Sorrow. Shame. All four emotions exploded within Kazuo's mind, as he looked up with distress in his eyes.

            "I wounded you, I nearly killed you with _hatred_. For that I am not her sensei."

            Lazer knelt to level his gaze with Kazuo. He saw the congealing stripe of his own blood marking that rueful face.

            "Love does not follow any rules. All of your training and principles fell away when faced with love, _that's _why you attacked me. Even so, you are her sensei, and I can forgive you." 

            Kazuo's face and ears touched the grass once more. After several moments he sat on his knees, reached for his sword and cleaned it on the grass. The strength returned to his eyes. His mind was again closed behind mental fog.

            "I trust this will not be whispered to anyone?"

            Lazer smiled.

            "Not even Sonic will know," he guaranteed, but said as an afterthought, "You must wash the blood off your face."

            Kazuo returned a sad smile that could have been interpreted in a thousand ways.

***

The two samurai walked slowly through the shades of the forest, talking of life, the trees, the earth on which they trod; anything that did not concern their earlier dispute. The walk was meant to mend any misgivings between them, and was a second gesture of goodwill on Kazuo's part. 

No one paid attention to them, a purple rabbit and red hedgehog that carried swords, as their walk led them through Knothole. In one of the picnic areas, Sonic looked up from his chilidog and remembered something that made him lose his appetite.

Lazer would have to know. 

Dropping the greasy remains onto the plate, the Blue Wonder rose from the table and pursued the samurai.

"Hey."

They turned to him, directing a gaze of black warmth and wary yellow. 

_Who's the guy with the orangey slits for eyes? _

"Lazer, I got this message yesterday. Take three guesses who it was from."

To Sonic's surprise, the red warrior released a groan of anguish: the same warrior who hated Robotnik with a passion that defied any mortal.

"Why, why now?"

"Because he's the bastard that he was, is, and always will be."

Lazer covered his face with a paw, shaking it left and right. Kazuo was a still, silent presence, scrutinizing the dialogue between hedgehogs.

"Where do we meet him?"

"Away from the forest, away from the city, near the coast. Tails will give the specifics."

"And you want me to help."

"Second to me, you are the best. Now, it's not often I do this, but I'm gonna be honest. I want to come back alive. I'm not gonna go solo and maybe get killed because I had no backup."

"I understand. I hope that Tails and Sally are not going?"

"I talked them out of it, period. We'll leave in a few hours, just before sunset."

Lazer's paw dropped, revealing a resolve that struggled against inner regret. 

_He wants to come back to _his_ girl, too. The only reason he's going is because he promised his country that he would,_ Sonic thought grimly. Vengeance was an everlasting obsession until carried out.

"Three pairs of eyes are better than two," Kazuo said quietly. It was his turn to be stared at.

"You do not need to do this," Lazer said.

"I must. There will be redemption."

Sonic, misunderstanding and underestimating the gravity of the situation, interrupted.

"Okay, okay, hold up. First off, what's your name?"

Kazuo spoke his name with a slight bow to Sonic. 

"What can you do?"

Kazuo glanced at a nearby wine bottle that was atop a picnic table. His sword flashed once, twice, and was replaced in the sheath before one second passed.

"What?" Sonic said, and the bottle fell apart into three pieces. There was not so much as a crack on any piece, so perfect were the cuts.

"That could just as easily be a Swatbot," Kazuo said without a shred of pride. Even so, Sonic found another flaw in the equation.

            "Lazer and I can move fast. I'll be runnin' and he'll be flyin' so fast you wouldn't see us. What about you?"

            An amused smile appeared upon the neutral face.

            "There are many mysteries in this world, Sonic-san."

            Sonic laughed at that truth.

            "Where'd you find this guy, Lazer?"

***

            The sunset came with another surprise, this time from the female Freedom Fighters. Sally, Bunnie and twelve other women were dressed in strange clothing, hats included. No one in the village remarked at this, except, of course, the three warriors.

            "Why are you dressed like that? Where're all of you going so late?" Sonic asked his wife. She gave him an impish smile.

            "We _girls_ held a meeting yesterday, and talked about having a night to ourselves in the city. We're going Christmas shopping!"

            The rest of her gang cheered. Sonic ran a paw through his spiky locks in confusion.

            "You didn't tell me."

            "Why should we tell everything to y'all men?" Bunnie asked, hands on hips. This prompted a general "Yeah!" from the rebel women. 

            "I wash my hands of this," Sonic sighed, "Just get there safely."

            "Don't worry _darling, _we girls stick up for each other."

            The shoppers were about to move off when Rebecca came running toward them, her white shopping clothes drenched in sweat and her hat crumpled in one paw. Lazer, who was sitting nearby with Kazuo, jumped to his feet.

            "You, too?"

            She smiled at him, exhausted and panting.

            "I ran, from Cridon. My sister didn't want to come, though."

            "You ran _forty-six miles?"_ he said incredulously. Forty-six miles, in that clothing! 

            "Ah do declare, Rebecca, you are a mess!" Bunnie exclaimed, "When we reach to thuh city we'll have to find you a place to freshen up!"

            "Sure, yeah," she said, running the sleeve of her jersey across her dripping brow. She saw Kazuo sitting close by, his look neither approving nor disapproving.

            "Sensei. I won't be late to open the dojo tomorrow morning."

            "Do not concern yourself with the dojo. I will carry out the lessons. You have trained for years without rest. Go, enjoy yourself."

            He directed his formidable gaze to Sally.

            "You and your friends need not fear danger tonight. I assure you."

            Rebecca was doubled over with gratitude.

            "Thank you. Thank you, sensei."

            Sonic, Lazer and Kazuo remained silent while the ladies left the village chatting and laughing. An escort service awaited them beyond the forest, Sally had mentioned. 

            "I think we should forget Robotnik and go after them," said Sonic, "They're insane, going shopping at night!"

            "Put your mind at ease. My student is with them," Kazuo said gently.

            "She doesn't know what I'm going to do," Lazer said, "It's for the best. She wouldn't have had any fun, knowing that I'm risking my life while she's shopping."

            "Yeah. Well, come on. Robotnik has company tonight."


	4. Ch 4

            The trio had left the Great Forest behind. Sonic pressed a button on the wristband Tails had made for him. The projected hologram indicated the coordinates to be in a straight line from them, far away in the desert.

            "Okay. Now we use afterburner. Kazuo?"

            "I will follow," he promised.

            "If you say you can. Come on!"

            Sonic outran them after a few seconds, but they were able to follow his dust trail easily enough. Lazer was a red bullet in the air, trailing power beams of burning crimson that added to his speed. Below, the dust cloud obstructed any view of Kazuo. 

            The excursion lasted half an hour, for Lazer at least. The dust cloud ended at the edge of a rough canyon. He was astonished when he saw Kazuo standing beside Sonic, the latter tapping his foot.            

            "Trust me, I don't know how the hell he did it, either. At least he couldn't outrun _me."_

"By the Walkers. Sonic, you have competition."

            "Wait till Mina hears of this. Anyway. Down there is an opening."

They peered over the edge. Several hundred meters down, on the canyon floor, was a circular pit, heavily guarded by robots and gun turrets. Mining robots were dumping cartloads of rocks into the pit. Peering closer they could make out dim electric lights and a conveyor belt carrying the rocks underground.

"Want me to blast 'em?" Lazer asked. The sight of his enemy had renewed old hatred.

            "We'll jump."

            "You and Kazuo will die."

            "That's where you come in."__

            Lazer blinked, then understood. He held out his arms for Sonic and Kazuo to hold.

            "Wonderful, just bloody wonderful," the red hedgehog muttered. He was about to have his arms ripped off by a smart aleck and someone who had tried to kill him earlier today. Criticisms aside, he and his 'baggage' dived off the cliff.

            "BONZAI!" Sonic yelled on the way down, almost breaking Lazer's concentration. When they had fallen past the threshold, he swooped almost horizontally, straining his arms to the limit, nearly skinning his stomach against the conveyor belt. He curved upward and told his companions to let go. They all landed safely, and ran for cover behind several large packing crates. Skydiving had attracted a small army of heavily armed Combots.

            "Excellent. We have absolutely no idea where to find Robotnik. Any bright ideas?" Sonic asked over the sound of gunfire.

            "Let's follow the conveyor belt. It must lead to a processing plant of some kind," Lazer speculated. Sonic nodded, and, at his signal, they dodged enemy fire while fleeing alongside the rumbling metal track. The payloads of rock were large enough to be used as cover. It was with trepidation that they entered a black tunnel, and discovered that the floor had disappeared beneath them. Lazer bathed the darkness with red light as he dove downward with the rocks, trying to locate Sonic and Kazuo.

            "Where are you?" he yelled. He saw two shapes below, hopping between the larger rocks. Kazuo and Sonic were losing momentum by jumping off the rocks _as they fell._ It was a feat impossible to those with lesser speed. A bright circle of reddish light waited below, where the rocks were falling into a massive steel vat. The aerial acrobats landed and immediately bounded off to avoid the falling debris.

            "You got it _way_ too easy, samurai boy," Sonic remarked to Lazer, who had hovered down next to them.

            "To each his own. Now what?"

            The vat groaned and tipped its contents into a molten pool of orange fire, which in turn was contained within a vat of enormous proportions. From this vat ran an innumerable number of pipes that disappeared into the metallic walls of this area.

            "Why is Robotnik melting rocks?" Sonic wondered.

            "He's nuttier than a squirrel in spring time. No offense to your wife," Lazer replied. The hedgehogs exchanged a glower. Kazuo lifted a paw and pointed across the room.

            "A door, larger than the others, and with more guards."

            The vat of molten rock was between them and the door. There were no walkways connected to the service platform they had landed on, either. The controls of the platform required direct interface with a robot in order to function.

            "Lazer, I guess we…"

            Sonic's words were cut off by the sharp _CRACK_ of energy beams. Lazer threw up a shield of Chaos energy.

            "Gun turrets and Combots," he announced, taking the brunt of the brutal assault. 

            "You have to carry us across," Sonic shouted into his ear above the racket. 

            "No can do. I can't support both of you and a shield at the same time."

            "Damn it!"

            Sonic's eyes roamed furiously for a pathway.

"Hey, Kazuo! Let's run along the rim of this container to the other side!"

            The container bubbled with orange heat. Kazuo shrugged and motioned for Sonic to lead. Taking a deep, determined breath, the "Fastest Thing Alive" lived up to his name and made it across in two seconds, barely noticing the burning metal beneath his shoes. He took three seconds to destroy all the robots that were guarding the door, and then waved to Kazuo. The rabbit samurai took a mighty leap onto the rim, and darted for his life toward Sonic. He made it across, but had to remove his wooden sandals since they had caught fire. Lazer lowered his shield, destroyed every gun turret with well-aimed energy shots and then flew over to his comrades. Sonic was shaking his head while Kazuo batted the flames off his footwear.

            "Damn it, Lazer…"

            "To each his own," Lazer interrupted, and led the way forward. The air became cooler with every step, as they walked past several doorways. 

            "How do we know if Robotnik isn't behind any of these?" Sonic asked, and paused by one of the doors. Lazer shook his head.

            "If _he_ comes within a hundred metres of me, I'll know. The Emeralds can see further than any of us. He knows that, too."

            That cleared up, they walked another five minutes until Lazer stopped. He looked to the plain-looking door on his left. 

            "What?" Sonic asked.            Lazer did not answer. He walked toward the door and it slid open. When they followed, even Kazuo flinched at what he saw inside.

            It was a War Museum. There were no neatly arranged cabinets that held weaponry or armour. There were no pictures that depicted heroism or the profile of a soldier. This museum placed on display the long dead bodies of hundreds of Freedom Fighters.

            The violated corpses, furry and non-furry alike, were held in suspended animation within glass chambers, floating in a greenish fluid. Some were missing limbs. Many of them were riddled with holes. One body mutely screamed while its disembodied head floated above the neck.

             "I knew her once," Sonic murmured by one of the chambers. The gray vixen, her eyes dead and staring, had a circular hole in the centre of her forehead, "Thank Destiny she died quickly."

            He turned away, shaken to the core. Sonic knew Robotnik to be perverse, but this macabre collection was the very depth of depravity. Was it not enough that he persecuted the living?

            "Lazer-san?" Kazuo said. The red hedgehog, frozen in place, was gazing at a row of ten bodies. Above, printed on the wall, was a single word: "ADRAX"

            _The city Lazer came from, _Sonic thought in shock. It had been six years since Robotnik had failed to overthrow the city of red hedgehogs. Not accepting defeat, Robotnik had dropped a nuclear bomb, which not only devastated the city but the entire country Xadra as well. From that holocaust Lazer had come, a survivor with vengeance in his eyes. He was standing, back turned to them, and they waited.

            Looking upon his fallen comrades in arms, a chill spread across Lazer. It was terrifying and delicious to him at the same time, for it was the same chill he had felt on _that day, _years ago. 

            "He took them during the war, while Adrax still existed. They are… trophies."

            "Bastard," Sonic muttered. 

            "Ryan, Karl, and Sid," Lazer said, and lifted his arms to the cadavers before him, "I grew up with them. We played basketball every Friday at the street corner. Where are they now?"

            His living friends waited in understanding silence, mulling over their owns thoughts, until his arms lowered and he faced them.

            "There is another door over there," he inclined his head toward it, set among the trophies of Robotnik. "Something is alive in there. Go. I have something to finish here."

            The coldness of his voice would not be argued with. Once they were gone, he clasped his paws together in silence for several moments, praying for the souls of his friends. His eyes opened but the chill had not left him.

            "So be it," he whispered.


	5. Ch 5

            They walked into the next room, and gasped. All around them was a paradise of plants. The air was humid and very warm. Lamps were scattered about the rock walls, simulating strong sunlight. Sonic and Kazuo stood in wonderment among the vegetation.

            "From grave to garden. I can't decide if it's eccentric or just creepy," said Sonic. 

            "It _is_ beautiful. Such a pleasant scent in the air," Kazuo remarked. The mosaic of plants created a sweet, strong aroma. They were tempted to just lie down and relax.

            "Wait. We should search the place. Robotnik doesn't make anything _this_ beautiful without hiding a weapon in it."

            "You are wise, Sonic-san. We have come too far to let our guard down."

            While they inspected the garden, Lazer entered. Behind him was a furnace, flaring orange and red as it consumed all. The door closed.

            "I cremated them. I'm sorry that I can't carry their ashes back for a proper burial."

            "Don't worry about it. You did the right thing." 

Lazer walked up to them, dusting fine ash off his fur while he glanced around.

"I'm not surprised. He puts two of his favourite rooms right next to each other."

"We should move on," said Kazuo, "lest we forget our mission."

"Yeah," said Sonic, "I want to be home before dark."

Nobody laughed. The exit was easy to spot: a shiny metal door between rows of hanging orchids. 

***

Doors and corridors were traversed for several minutes, the monotony broken ever so often by automatic gun turrets. The final door opened to a wide hall, filled with the noise of machinery: it was a robot assembly line. Conveyor belts were transporting the half-finished abominations, pausing at a terminal to add an arm or a head. Completed robots were carried through tunnels in the walls to all other parts of the base.

"Another room worth destroying," noted Lazer with a bitter smile, and then, "We need to remove the guards first."

Around fifty Swatbots were marching to intercept the intruders. They converged in a semicircle of black metal.

"HALT. YOUR TERMINATION WILL NOW COMMENCE."

"Gee, guys, can't we discuss this?" asked Sonic in his most sarcastic voice.

"NO."

"Well then. Come on, samurais, let's negotiate."

The trio negotiated with extreme prejudice. The floor was soon hidden beneath robotic limbs and crude oil.

"Filthy," Kazuo remarked, frowning, "Oil stains deeper than blood."

His gray kimono was slick with the black substance.

"Robots do not bleed as people do," said Lazer, his fur muddy black in patches. "Blood stains far deeper."

"Hey! We're not gettin' anywhere by talking or philosophizing or whatever you're doing. Robotnik waits for no one."

Lazer turned toward Sonic, who was also as grubby as a hedgehog could be. He grinned a little, and signaled for Kazuo to complete the sentence.

"He who is impatient…"

"…Learns little." 

Sonic stared at them for a moment, shook his head and turned away.

"Crazy samurais," he muttered.

***

Snively fixed his gaze upon the monitor. The three intruders were drawing nearer to the arena, having passed the other tests (as Snively knew they would). He watched them leave the ruined assembly lines and enter a smaller room: a cube of ten metres per side. He watched them search every nook and cranny of that empty room, but finding nothing.

"This is where you are separated," he said, and flicked a switch on the console. The entrance to the room slammed shut. Two doors appeared on another wall, with a force field separating them. Sonic was shut off from Lazer and Kazuo. 

Snively smiled while Lazer attempted to breach the force field with dual power beams. He failed. _After all,_ Snively thought, _the force field is made of 'Anti-Chaos energy': the fruit of Robotnik's genius._

Sonic said something to the samurais, who nodded. Kazuo went through the door, but Lazer paused for a moment to exchange words with Sonic. After a few moments, the hedgehogs went their ways.

"I wonder," Snively thought aloud in a very disinterested voice, "Were the rodents saying their final goodbyes?"

***

_Damn this place is claustrophobic._

Sonic was trotting along the damp tunnel, accompanied by the wet flopping of his shoes. The walls were just a few inches away from skinning his shoulders.

_Separating us and leading us into traps. Very smart, you old bastard._

It was a tactic Robotnik had tried before.

_This is one trap I'll get out of. For _her_, if not anyone else. The will to live is stronger than anything…_

***

            _It's cold. This tunnel must be a mile long._

Kazuo's sandals, even when damp, were silent. Every step that Lazer took, though, echoed and re-echoed throughout the tunnel. 

            "The spikes on your boots make stealth impossible."

            "And they damage the dojo floor. I should wear sandals, as you do."

            "That would be wise."

            …_kaching-kaching-kaching-kaching…_

"I will _definitely_ buy a pair."

            "No. I will instruct you in the art of making them."

            It became warm again. The exit to the tunnel closed behind them.

            _Ten holes in the walls, big enough for Hoverbots._

It was two hundred yards to the door in front of them. They ran for it, but were sidetracked when, from the walls, metallic death flowed.

            "Fight well, Kazuo. I won't have time to help you."

            With that, the red hedgehog unleashed his blade and went to battle. 

            "Worry not," said Kazuo with a grim smile, and drew his own blue-white katana.

***

            Sonic entered a globular room, its walls plated with steel. A black line lay across the equator of the room, dividing it into hemispheres. On one side of the line was Sonic, on the other, an exit. Beyond, he could see another tunnel leading off to… what? He walked across the line and saw the door slam shut before he could blink an eye. He stepped behind the line and the door was open at once. He performed a 'Figure 8', dashing across the line faster than sound. 

            The door snapped shut and he hurt his shoulder against its unyielding surface.

            "Hell," he said, "This one's a puzzle."

            Ten minutes of running or rolling back and forth across the black line produced the same result. He shoulders and head were sore from being bumped at supersonic speeds against the door.

            "Good one, Buttnik. I'm stumped."

            He looked at the thin line that blocked his path to freedom. It was at the perfect center of the globular room, running in a complete circle.

            "Why not," he sighed, and started to run along the path of the line, which meant running along the curved walls and ceiling. The door would open when more than half his body tilted away from it.

            "Hmm…"

            He rolled into a spiky ball, zooming along the line. His quills, turned into supersonic blades, cut into the steel plated floor. The entire room split apart in two halves. More importantly, the door was still open when he walked toward it.

            "Shame on, you Buttnik."

            He strode into the second tunnel.

***

            _Viewpoint_

Strange, is it not, what goes through the mind of a warrior during combat. While his sword hacked through the metal hides of Robotnik's forces, Lazer was remembering the words of his late sensei.

            _There are many viewpoints to be considered on the battlefield. Some may fight with anger, others with sadness. Few will fight with neutrality of mind, without emotion or thought._

Lazer could feel anger within him, a fire that would not be quenched. And yet… there was more to life than anger and hatred. He had known this all his life, yet it was inexplicable.

            "What's the use?" he questioned himself. The robots were so many in number he could destroy more than one with a single sword blow. But what was the reason for the fight?     

            _Wanrikken is not simply a sword technique. It enables the wielder to see all viewpoints as _one._ That is how you will master it…_

"If I ever do."

            He glanced at Kazuo between slashes. His comrade was holding his own, swift and sure in his strikes. 

            "Anger begets anger," Lazer said quietly. There were so many enemies, both around and within him.

            "Hate begets hate…"

            His arms were beginning to tire.

            "And there is sadness…"

            "Confusion…"

            "There is indifference…"

            Lazer remembered the face of Rebecca, and he wished to fight no more.

            "After all these pass away, there is… love…"

            _…Wanrikken…_

For the briefest of moments, Lazer viewed himself _outside_ of all these emotions. He saw that his enemies, though they numbered in the hundreds, were all _one_. He, chosen by the Ancient Walkers to be a bearer of five Chaos Emeralds, was _above_ them all. He would not fight, and yet he would fight.

_"WANRIKKEN!"_ he roared, lifting his sword high above his head. Revelation burst within him; it spiraled upward from his heart and to his mind, consuming him in its power.

Kazuo, hearing his ally's shout of absolute triumph, spun around to witness the _final_ secret of the sword style called Wanrikken.

"Lazer-san?"

            A column of blazing red energy shot upward, bathing the area in crimson light. At the very heart of this unbridled display of power was Lazer, his sword held high.

"This… ends… _now!" _he declared. From within his being something moved, and was set free. Images, copies, even, of Lazer, born of Chaos Emerald energy, exploded outward into the room, standing or hovering beside every robot. Each image held a sword that seemed to be forged of red flames. Lazer slashed with his sword, and his images followed suit. The flash of light was blinding. 

There was silence. Then, with a metallic groan, the robots fell apart, some exploding as they did. The images of Lazer, their task complete for now, re-entered their creator's body in a vortex of Chaos Energy. The red light dimmed. Lazer dropped to the floor amidst ruined robotic parts. He stood there, sword in hand.

"Lazer-san. It was… amazing. I am very impressed," Kazuo said, pushing aside junk to reach Lazer.

The new master of the Wanrikken slowly shook his head back and forth, taking in the sum total of the destruction he, alone, had caused.

"By the Walkers... I never knew… thank you, sensei."

He fell to his knees. The sword clattered to the ground. He slumped forward, as though he were dead.

***

            _Damn this place is even _more _claustrophobic._

He was in perfect darkness. The exit of the tunnel had slid shut, leaving him in this black, abysmal place. He held his arms out, creeping forward inch by inch until his paws struck something solid.

            _A robot?_

            It was a sphere of metal, supported by a pole in the floor. Feeling around it, he discovered rings of metal protruding from the pole. 

            _It's a pylon!_

He turned, groping for something else in the opposite direction. Sure enough, he found another pylon, an exact replica of the first one.

            _Two pylons are next to each other. And what do pylons conduct? Electricity._

The first time he had learned that was during a raid on Robotropolis, about a decade ago. There were two rows of pylons en route to the targeted warehouse. He had watched one of his friends die between them, struck down by an invisible force.    

"Pylons turn your fur to nylon," Sonic said. That phrase had been coined during the same mission, and he had never forgotten it.

_            But where's the electricity now? How could anyplace be so dark?_

            There was a rusty _creak_, directly in front of him. It became louder, turning into a groan. Sonic retreated from the sound until he was against the tunnel door. From the source of the sound, amidst that absolute darkness, was a blue spark. It jumped from the left to right.

            _They're conducting. There will be plenty enough light when it gets going…_

After five more bolts, each more brilliant than the last, Sonic could discern the large object behind the pylons that was groaning loudly as it moved. 

            _A dynamo._

Less than two minutes passed before Sonic understood the purpose of the gigantic dynamo, and the pylons. A spark jumped from the pylons (now ablaze with blue electricity) and hit the floor a few feet from Sonic. He jumped, feeling the thrill of an electric jolt course through him. He looked down, and saw that the floor was a sheet of gray metal.

            _Oh no. It jumps from the pylons, hits the floor, and spreads to _me_…_

            He learned from that physics lesson. When the next spark hit the floor, he leaped off the ground to avoid becoming a pylon himself. Another spark hit the floor as he landed, and the jolt caused his body to spasm. It dawned upon him, like the cold fingers of death closing around his throat, that he would not be able to keep pace forever. After a few seconds, there were hundreds of sparks jumping into the floor. He was only able to stay airborne long enough to avoid the worst of it. When he landed, his body shuddered with electricity. The dynamo was a spinning blur, rocking its axis while pouring blue energy into the pylons. 

            _There must be a way out of this. There must be…_

He had to keep on jumping, for _her._

***

_            Memories. Dreams… _

Lazer sat in the cramped apartment of his sensei. The morning sounds of Adrax City came through the window. The old hedgehog sat in a rectangle of sunlight.

"War is upon us. Guns and explosives replaced the sword centuries ago. I cannot fight in this war, Lazer."

There were no formalities between them.

"Arikam, I will fight. I will bring this… tyrant… to justice. I cannot sit idly by while he slaughters people. I have more power than he does!"

To emphasize his point, the young hedgehog formed a glowing red ball in his hand.

            "Yes, yes. You speak much of your Chaos Emeralds, but not of your own strength."

            Lazer clenched one paw. Scarlet flame enveloped his fist.       

"The Emeralds _are_ my strength. Without them I would be useless. Years ago, I had no idea why the Walkers chose _me_, out of all the red hedgehogs in this city. Now that the war has come, I have found my place."

            "To defeat our common enemy?"

            "He is an enemy to all. He persecuted another country before he came here. He overthrew its King, but Xadra did nothing to help since we weren't involved. Now we _are_ involved. I cannot allow him to win!"

            The apartment and his sensei shifted out of focus, becoming blurry.

            _It was the End Day. Adrax and its country, Xadra, were now a radioactive wasteland. The buildings that, only yesterday, were so tall and magnificent were now rubble. Its citizens, numbering in the tens of millions, were dust blown in the wind. _

The nuclear explosion had erased an entire species from the face of Mobius, but one had survived the blast. He had been high up in the atmosphere, shooting down robotic air forces, when the bomb hit.

            He had scoured the city, cocooned by an aura of Chaos Energy. He had found his father, a scientist, in the ruins of his laboratory. The lab, buried deep underground, had withstood the brunt of the explosion but could not protect its occupants.

            _Do not take a life for a life. You may not understand now, but someday, you will._

            Beside his father was his mother, already dead, already at peace. He laid the burnt corpses side by side in the diseased soil. Plants would not grow in Adrax for thousands of years. Everything had died forever, annihilated, never to return.

            There had been only one question on his mind.

            Why.

            Why?

            He did not know. 

            He had wanted to die. Releasing the protective cocoon of energy, and lying beside the grave of his parents, would have ended his miserable existence.

            Fate, or Destiny, had intervened in the lowest point of his life. The Three Walkers appeared to him for the second time.

            _It seems that we have made an error in our choice. He wishes for death._

_            He is entitled to death, if he so desires._

_            Then our efforts were in vain?_

            _No. Let us help him._

_            Give him a second chance. _

_            We shall give to him a portion of our willpower._

So it was, is, and shall be. He awoke to darkness.

            "Am I dead?"

            "No."

            It took a great deal of effort to open his eyes. Kazuo was at his side, sitting on his knees as usual. Piles and piles of spare parts were all around them, the remains of robots.

            "Whatever doubts I had about your potential, Lazer-san, are now gone."

            "That's good news."

            It took an even greater effort to struggle to his feet. He used his sword for support, leaning heavily on it.

            "I'm exhausted. How long was I out for?"

            "Two minutes. Can you walk?"

            "Not yet, but I can fly."

            Floating off the ground required no physical effort, and he could grip his sword. He followed Kazuo, resembling a mannequin dangling from invisible strings.

***

            _That's it!_

Being zapped so many times had frazzled his brain, but he had found the flaw, the weak point.

             _It's on the dynamo, a control panel!_

The dynamo was spinning so fast that its control panel was only visible for an instant. Sonic, however, was the master of speed. Leaping for the final time (another landing on that electrified floor would surely kill him), he curled into a ball and performed a spin attack. In a blue blur he crashed into the dynamo, rebounding as he did. The pylons went dead, plunging the room into sudden darkness. He fell face downward, and cold, bare steel greeted him. The dynamo screeched and slowed down, rumbling to a stop. Silently, he thanked Destiny, Fate and the Ancient Walkers that he was still alive.

            _Looks like I'll be coming home after all, Sally._

***

            They had entered the Arena. Snively notified his uncle.

            "Good… I will watch them. Start the countdown, and prepare the robots," the ponderous voice said over the speakers.

_His voice is stronger today._

            "Yes, sir," he affirmed, and flicked several switches. The final act was about to commence.

***

            "Sonic!"

            "Hey, samurai boys."

            The door, like the others before it, closed the moment Sonic entered the arena with Lazer and Kazuo. The floor, walls and domed ceiling of the arena were a dazzling white. The light in this room seemed to come from _within_ the walls. There were rings of black cameras (from floor to ceiling), each with a neatly imprinted "R" on its casing.

            "Your fur's standing on end."

            "And you look tired. I thought you could last longer than this."

"You should've been there when…"

            _"We meet for the last time."_

A large hologram appeared. It first resembled a jumbled mass of wires and cables, but closer inspection showed that something was at its centre. A rounded figure reclined there, it was to him that all the wires and tubes were connected.

            "Robotnik? What the hell happened to you?"

            _"Sonic, this is my body. It was broken. I am reduced to this pathetic state, relying on machines to sustain me. Your brother caused this."_

"I don't have a bro, Buttnik. Was your head screwed up, as well?"

            "He means me," said Lazer. "Remember when we were Brothers of the Rainbow? I caught Robotnik with the powers that the Rainbow gave me. It was as if I was holding him in the palm of my paw. When he tried to teleport, I tried to squash him."

Lazer closed his paw into a fist, re-enacting that moment weeks ago.

"I almost succeeded."

            _"Yes, you, Lazer. You did this to me, and your 'brother' helped. For that you will die."_

            Circular pits in the arena floor swooshed open. Three masses of green metal ascended, humanoid in shape. They were well over ten feet tall and half as broad. Wicked blades gleamed on their forearms and legs. Their arms were Gatling guns. Their legs and chest held long-range projectile weaponry.

            "Are they here to show us to the spa?" wondered Sonic.

            "I think not," replied Kazuo, unsheathing his sword.

            "Let's go," sighed Lazer, "One on one."

            The cameras followed the heated battle, sending the video feed to Robotnik's private VDU.

            "Mark Three WarBots are no match for them," he observed. Sonic had floored one, removing all of its limbs before destroying the headpiece. Kazuo drove his katana deep into the other WarBot's chest, and ripped it upward, crushing the brain unit. Lazer, who no longer appeared exhausted, cut the last WarBot into five pieces.

            "Now… the conclusion…" Robotnik gloated.


	6. Ch 6

            "Is that all?" 

            Sonic was addressing all the cameras in the arena.

            "Is that all you got, Robotnik?" he yelled. Lazer was leaning on his sword, dragging in breath after weary breath. Kazuo ventured forward.

            "Sonic, asking for a fight is most unwise."

            "Yeah?" he said, and rounded on the rabbit, "He put us here to fight, didn't we? We're like lab rats, doing his little _tests. _We scurried all over this damn place, trying to find the cheese. And what do we get? Nothing. Just three slightly larger robots."

            _"Calm down, Sonic. You have fulfilled your role. You will sleep now."_

"Robotnik…" Sonic began to say, but was silenced when the floor beneath his feet became electrified. He staggered.

            _"Kazuo?"_

"Yes, now," said the rabbit. He withdrew his sword.

            "What?"

            _Thwack. _The hilt connected with the side of Sonic's head... he slipped to the floor. Kazuo sheathed the blade, while turning to face Lazer. The red hedgehog was stupefied into silence.

            _"Ah, deception. It the best weapon of all," _Robotnik was saying, _"He has been my own spy for twenty years."_

"No," Lazer said, "His mind was open to me some time ago. I found no deception within him, not the slightest trace. The Emeralds do not lie."

            Kazuo laughed. Lazer could not believe that such coldness, such stark contempt could come from Kazuo in his laughter alone.

            "You are inexperienced, _Lazer._ When I revealed my mind, even then I was guarding my innermost thoughts from you. Chaos Emeralds cannot unravel the truth."

            His eyes were more than bits of glass now. They were jagged, bitter shards, piercing all reason and shredding all sanity.

            "Then, you are his spy. I could never imagine such a thing. But you… you are also the sensei of… Rebecca. Why have you deceived her, too?"

            "I have not deceived her. I taught her all I know. I made her stronger than any other."

            His smile was cruel and cold.

            "She will need so much comforting after your death."

            The words sunk into Lazer. His mind and body became awash in the chill, the chill he had felt _that day, _the _End Day._

            "You will never touch her again."

            He punctuated his words by lifting his sword.

            "You will fall with your master. You will both fall…"

            Black eyes locked onto amber.

            "…To the Wanrikken style."

            They jumped, and, while Robotnik and Snively looked on, the ultimate conflict began. 

            "Lazer!"

            "Kazuo!"

            Their swords met each other in a flash of blue and white sparks. Unhurt, they both hit the ground and went for each other. 

            _If I use enough energy, I can melt his sword._

Lazer struck, sword aflame with the power of the Emeralds. Kazuo's sword was unaffected.

            _"Did I forget to mention? Kazuo is protected by Anti-Chaos energy. Your greatest advantage is lost."_

"Not yet," said Lazer, as their swords clashed again, "NOT YET!"

            He stepped back and thrust the blade, imbued with Chaos Energy, into the ground. The floor under Kazuo erupted with the force of a volcano, launching the rabbit samurai into the air amidst flying rocks and torn sheets of metal. 

            "Not yet, Lazer!" said Kazuo, defiance blazing from his eyes. He reached out and held onto one of the cameras, high up on the wall. Lazer responded by charging the grounded sword with even more energy. The arena floor became awash in red, pulsating light.

            "Let go of the camera, I dare you."

            Kazuo, glaring at his adversary, kicked off the wall. While he fell, he pointed his sword straight down. Upon impact with the glowing floor, there was another explosion. 

            "What the…"

Kazuo was flying through the air, a purple-gray blur. Lazer tried to dodge, but his left shoulder was slashed. He reeled, stumbling backward, pain scorching his arm.

"You let your sword take the brunt of the explosion. You just rode the shockwaves after that."

"As you see, Lazer, your technique is flawed."

Fending off Kazuo with one good arm was not easy. He blocked a few cuts and slices, but received two to the chest.

"You cannot even defend yourself with one arm, therefore I doubt you can attack."

"The Emeralds heal me as we speak. I have that advantage over you."

"Then I shall kill you faster."

While his left arm was mended, Lazer was slashed in both legs and his other arm. Three more gashes were added across his chest and stomach. The carmine fluid ran in rivulets down his body and dripped to the floor.

"You're still standing. A commendable effort, but the next strike will kill."

            Lazer fended off the killing blow to his head, but the follow-up stab struck home. The shock of cold steel among his intestines almost made him black out. He clutched his stomach, dizzy with the loss of blood and the sharp pain radiating from the latest wound. 

            "Again you refuse to die. You…"

            "Shut up," Lazer snarled, and made his move. He slammed his sword into the ground, sending a powerful shockwave toward Kazuo.

            "The same move," Kazuo spat, and hopped aside.

            "There, you are wrong!" Lazer shouted. He swiped his sword crosswise, and (even from that distance) the shockwave changed direction. It hit Kazuo with shattering force, causing the sword to fall from his fingers and shredding the gray kimono. He lay still for a moment. Beneath the tatters of gray cloth, hard black metal gleamed. It covered all of his body except his head: a detachable bio-enhancing suit.

_That explains his speed and strength, _Lazer thought. He used this time to allow the Emeralds to heal him, but was far from complete recovery when Kazuo rolled over, grabbed the sword, and got up. A spark of triumph burned in his eyes. 

            "Flawed. Flawed! Do you hear me, Lazer? No matter how enormous your power, the technique is not enough! The sword style, itself, is _limited_ by your vow, your vow to never kill. Without a killing instinct, you will never defeat me!"

            With those words, Kazuo charged for the final attack, his lethal sword eager for the kill.

            "You are wrong once more, Kazuo," Lazer said, calmly crossing his arms, "With the power of Five Chaos Emeralds, the Wanrikken style _has no limit!"_

He uncrossed his arms; even as Kazuo brought the sword down to strike him dead.

            _"Wanrikken style- SWORD HAND CRESCENT!"_

            His left paw and the tip of his sword swung outward in an arc, trailing fiery gold light. The crescent energy wave hit Kazuo with a force so great that his sword shattered. What was left of his kimono, and bio-enhancing suit, was rent asunder. He was sent spinning through the air like a rag-doll, leaving a sizeable dent in the wall before crumpling to the arena floor.

            "The traitor… is defeated…" Lazer said, utterly worn out, "His master is… all that is left…"

One minute, two minutes passed until the pain faded. Lazer went to his fallen comrade's side and shook him awake.

"Get up. We're not finished yet."

"Did you get him? Did you get Kazuo?"

Lazer motioned across the battle-torn arena to the furry, purple heap that lay very still.

"Another traitor," Sonic said with profound sadness. 

"Yes, but the greatest traitor of all remains."

The two hedgehogs stood, facing the ever-watchful cameras. Lazer spoke first, saying what was on both their minds.

"You have been weighed, Robotnik, and you have been found wanting. _Your entire life has been wasted! _The Freedom Fighters are still alive. What more do you have to say?"

_"I say that _I_ have won, and you have not."_

In front of them, the immense wall of the arena shimmered, blurred and showed a view of the Freedom Fighter city. Night had fallen, but the city was dotted with light.

"Big screen TV. I need one of those," quipped Sonic.

_"Zoom in."_

There, on the roof of a fast food outlet, was a formless black mass.

"Hey, I work there," Sonic said, "Nine-to-five delivery of pizza. If you weren't so damn evil, Robotnik, you could've been one of my customers."

_"Silence, rodent. Do you know what that shape is?"_

Sonic heard Lazer take several hasty steps backward. He turned, to see a look of pure horror etched upon that face.

"A bomb. By the Walkers, it's a nuclear bomb."

Realization struck Sonic with screaming terror. 

_"Sally!"_

She was in that city, within the blast radius! He whirled about to face the gigantic image of the thermonuclear device, now filling the entire wall. It towered over him, bloated and menacing, its digital display reading "0:42"

"How does it feel, Sonic, to know that you are helpless? Can you feel the unique pain within you, that comes with the knowledge of total defeat?" 

            "Where are you, Rebecca? Where are you now, Becky?" Lazer was saying in a trancelike voice. History was repeating itself. All, all that he had lived for would be destroyed, and, even worse, he would lose the woman he loved.

            "No way. This is wrong," said Sonic, while watching the timer tick down to 0:35, "This can't be happening!"

            _"It is, Sonic. Unless you can surpass the light barrier, you cannot reach there in time. You, who have broken the laws of physics so often, are now limited by them!" _Robotnik laughed. 

            "The speed of light…"

            Chaos Control, there was no other way. But how…

            _Lazer!_

He grabbed Lazer's arm. The red hedgehog turned his agonized expression to Sonic.

            "In the end, it doesn't matter. My life was wasted…"

            Sonic cracked the back of his paw across Lazer's face.

            "You're giving up? Aren't you the one who never lets his allies fall? There is a way to stop this…"

            The thought within Sonic's mind was so strong, so extreme in its urgency that Lazer was able to sense and understand it at once.

            "Chaos Control? You told me of this, you need an Emerald…"

            The mask of sorrow melted, as wisdom flowed in.

            "I am Five in One."

            Lazer glowed with all the brilliance his Five Emeralds could muster. Sonic felt tremendous energy suffuse his being: he drew upon this energy and said two simple words.

            "Chaos Control!"

            They vanished.

***

            In the city, it was no longer night. A red sun had blazed into sudden life upon the roof of a popular pizza parlour.

            "The bomb! We'll teleport it outta here!"

            Sonic ran to it (0:21) but Lazer held him back.

            "Allow me."

            With flaming cataracts of Chaos energy streaming from him, Lazer rested his paws upon the bomb.

            "Don't spoil the evening for the ladies. Go back to Knothole and get some sleep. I'll see you… in the morning."

            "But you can't…"

            _"Chaos Control!"_

The bomb, the red hedgehog and all the light gave way to a startling, empty darkness. Sonic hesitated, blinking several times as he did.

            "But _damn, _samurai boy learns fast!"

***

            "Snively!"

            "The bomb's gone, Sir, with Lazer. Sonic remains in the city."

            "What is this? Where have that red pincushion and MY bomb…"

            There was a brief, red explosion in the arena. Lazer smiled for the cameras, his paw patting the bomb (0:14).

            "I believe that this is yours."

            He looked toward the sleeping Kazuo.

            "You may escape, but he will not."

            He slung the rabbit's arm over his shoulder, said the words and they were gone.

            "Quickly, Snively! Teleport me away from here!" ordered the quavering voice of Robotnik.

            "We are low on power, Sir. There is sufficient energy for _one_ teleport."

            Robotnik knew what that tone of voice meant.

"You would not dare leave me…"

            "Goodbye, uncle."

            _"SNIVELY!"  _            

            The small scientist teleported out of Robotnik's life forever, just as the timer arrived at 0:00.

***

            Sonic was traversing the plains between the Great Forest and the city when the earth trembled, and a faraway roar could be heard. 

            "All is well," he whispered, feeling a peace, a calm he had never experienced before. By some instinct, he knew that Robotnik was dead. How he knew this, he did not know… he simply knew it to be true, and he was at peace. All _was_ well.

***

            Lazer sat cross-legged, waiting. The Lake of Rings was an unbroken mirror, reflecting the dark trees and white moonlight. Kazuo stirred, and awoke. He sat on his knees, paws splayed on the grass.

            "You," he growled, "How was that last attack able to break my defense?"

            _Ever the warrior, even when conquered._

"That last attack, the 'Sword Hand Crescent', you could say I made it up on the spur of the moment."

"Spare me from your scoffing, how did you break my shield and my armour?"

"I combined my chi energy with the Emeralds. My chi destroyed the shield. The Chaos energy destroyed your armour." 

            "So," Kazuo sniffed, "You _do_ have natural power, even to the point of using your _soul_ as a weapon! I admit defeat. Kill me, now, as an honourable warrior should."

            "No."

            Fury grew in those amber eyes.

            "You denied me a warrior's victory, and you would also deny me a warrior's death?"

            "By defeating you, I prevented you from making a mistake. Right now, I am setting you free. Do not search for Robotnik, he is dead and will stay dead."

            "What would you have me do? You speak as though you possess great wisdom," Kazuo sneered. Lazer spoke with calm assurance.

            "Kazuo, you are a great teacher. You should continue to teach. Find another student, maybe more than one. Teach them what you have learned: teach them that life is more than hatred. Teach them, and watch them grow strong. You can live knowing that you helped another person."

            "Answer me this, Lazer. What must I do to forget love? How can I forget the love I have for Rebecca?"

            _There is no cure for that._

"Love is eternal, _if_ it is true love. Do you _lust_, or _love_ her, Kazuo?"

            There was silence. Lazer turned his head aside.

            "You should go. Now. Do not stay here."

            Kazuo silently complied.

            "Remember, you have an opportunity to change your life for the better. Do not misuse it."

            The forest swallowed Kazuo. Lazer let out a long, sad sigh. 

            _First Hannah, now Kazuo… I wonder if I'll have to save anyone else from the darkness…_

***

            Sonic surprised himself by following Lazer's advice. He did not turn back to the city, to inform Sally of the good (great!) news. He did not go in search of Tails, or anyone else in Knothole, to relate his adventure. He went straight home.

            _Do not pass GO… do not collect $200._

He showered and then bandaged his head (the hilt of Kazuo's sword had left a lasting impression). He stripped the gloves off his paws, kicked off his shoes and dived under the bed sheets. 

            "Tomorrow… tomorrow… I'll love you tomorrow…"

            Tomorrow was just a day away.

***

            _And what happened to Snively?_

The coordinates had been random. He could have teleported himself into a mountain, or even into outer space. When he could see again, the nephew of the late Robotnik was on the outskirts of a small town. Bright sunlight beat down upon his head and hunched shoulders.

            "Daylight? I'm on the other side of Mobius."

            He looked with a little apprehension toward the town. No one on this side of the planet knew him. He had no money, no place to go. He was alone.

            _There must be a job for a technical expert somewhere…_

He plodded onward, unsure of destiny, unsure of fate. 

***END***

Author's note:

Well then. That took a while to type out. If I can find more of that precious commodity called 'time', I will continue this particular storyline. Within this fevered mind of mine, there is something brewing for Lazer, Sonic and their friends … but I digress. Please tell me what you thought about this story.

                                                                                                                            -LazerTH


End file.
